"The Cars That Eat People" is actually somewhat different from the "The Cars That Ate Paris". It was re-edited in the US without Peter Weir's permission. I'll admit, I find both versions hard to sit through so I can't give a full analysis of the differences, but the main changes I noticed are at the beginning and end.

First of all, the opening "ad" was removed from the re-edited version.

In the original, Arthur Waldo and his brother are unemployed Australians looking for work. In the re-edited version, courtesy of a voiceover we are told that Arthur and his brother are American tourists from Brooklyn who decided to drive across Australia. (Amazing how Arthur suddenly obtains an Australian accent once he reaches Paris. Must've been caused by the accident!)

The original version simply ends with Arthur driving off into the night. The re-edited version has more voiceover with Arthur saying he's "getting on the first plane out of this crazy country". As the picture fades out we hear the sounds of a car crash and a lion (?) growling.

This film is a legend in our family - for all the wrong reasons. It was shown on the then new Channel 4 in the mid 1980's, and we all thought it was going to be like Mad Max!. Stunned by the dull plot, terrible acting, lack of action & dreadful camera work, I went to bed. Foolishly, my younger brother & mother stayed up, convinced it would get better. I was kept up by their howls of derision and the next morning it was roundly declared the worst film they'd ever seen!. Years later it came on again & decided to watch it again, expecting to find it was in fact an entertaining black comedy rather than an action movie. I discovered they were right - it is pure drivel from start to finish . The creator of badmovies should be congratulated - firstly for creating a really entertaining site, but also for wanting to kick the s**t out of Peter Wier!

I first saw “The Cars” at the not-so-tender age of 19 and being the gear head that I am I “got it” immediately. In spite of your very cool website, you have this movie all wrong. This is NOT a motorized version of “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.” It is actually a dark comedy with some truly disturbing undertones that has a lot to say about both modern society’s dependence on and worship of cars, and about the desperation of rural small-town life. The “cigarette ad” opening is just one of many barbs thrown at modern day consumerism, and the idea of a whole town’s economy depending on cars is only as ridiculous as Detroit! The whole idea of a town of ghouls is really unsettling, and some of the film’s scenes are just creepy: the townspeople at the bar slavishly putting down their beers in preparation to strip another “victim” at the sound of the bell as the hapless traveler in the Jaguar approaches his end, and the “rally” outside the church where cars are being wrecked to the tune of the townspeople singing a church hymn. While most young men’s cars are the objects of their careful affection, the young men in Paris intentionally destroy theirs-and everything else-for the only kind of thrill to be had in their dead-end existence. And haven’t we all personally known control freaks like the mayor, who barely hang on with their iron fists and then lose everything when they push just a little too hard? For a car lover like myself who understands the dark side of my hobby, this is a great film! (and when was the last time you saw a ’58 Desoto with right-hand steering???)

I hate this movie. I hated this movie when I watched it 3 hours ago, and I still hate it. I want to burn every copy of this movie and then p**s on the ashes. If this director guy wants to make a point about something, then he should have at least made it in something that doesn't make you want to go kill somebody afterwards.

A junked town, crazy people, junked cars? Is this an early Mad Max movie? I loved the spiked beetle. (It could be Herbie the Love Bug's Rival!) Very short on plot, and I would not consider it as a black comedy!

The comments of the people who think 'The Cars That Ate Paris' is a good film that can only be appreciated by intelligent Australians remind me of that story 'The Emperor's new clothes'.This film is s**t on every level imaginable.

Peter Weir's films have always explored general themes of alienation within society: and this -- his first full length film -- explored this as well. The film is not a horror film at all but it is the darkest shade of black comedy -- please note the advertisement at the beginning, the scene where Arthur becomes a Parking Inspector, or the scene where Arthur overcomes his fear of cars with the immortal line "I can drive!". It's definitely a film of it's time, like Easy Rider, If or Billy Jack.

The film -- as far as I've been able to find out -- was made on a shoestring, with a budget of about 1% of a standard Hollywood film: and many of the cast and crew were actually students at the time.

Couldn't agree more with the points made by "Tuffy"in his short review. Specifically, those undertonesand subtle jokes in every minute of this film are just amazing. Despite the fact the I consider myself a low budget film junkie this one is a must see for everyone!

As of February 2003, the overall cultural impact of this movie can be witnessed for instance by the recent articlein Time on the ban of inner city traffic in London,the article is called "The cars that ate London".Which is in my view a firm proof of the factthat this movie has finally achieved level of stardomand generall appreciation, which it truely deserves.

My relatives are extras in this movie which is not something to boast about I guess. Sofala is only famous for one other movie which was filmed there and that was Sirens. So the only reason why I watch this is to see my auntie and uncles as teenagers. I just wish it was a cooler movie that they were in or at least one with saucie models like Elle! The wind charm made out of Jag parts was cool but it is the bad side of B-Grade with a lot of potential slipping through untouched.

This is definitly my favourite movie of all time. I think many people would have enjoyed the movie a lot more if they weren't lied to by the video case - it's a very intelligent movie - and hilarious! No suprise that Peter Weir has gone on to be such a highly regarded film maker.

I made comments earlier (much much earlier) in regards to my relatives being in "The Cars Ate Paris" and having had some time to honestly think about the movie again in depth I have just one thing to add. The movie was poorly executed by todays standards. Screenplay was a big let down in comparison to the storyline. Perhaps if the movie was given a re-touch, storyline modernised and a bigger budget then Peter Weir's original could be a more digestable and widely accepted movie.